Rain of Brass Petals
by Sedaytion
Summary: Dragged into the nightmarish world that belongs to Elizabeth, Gaignun and Rubedo have nothing to do but face their own fears and pray none of their other friends get dragged into hell.


**R a i n **

**O f**

**B r a s s**

**P e t a l s**

_Dragged into the nightmarish world that belongs to Elizabeth, Gaignun and Rubedo have nothing to do but face their own fears and pray none of their other friends get dragged into hell._

_Just a quick chapter one haha sorry for the poor quality xD I'll try to write better x) Enjoy and Merry Christmas guys :) xxxxx_

**.| Chapter One |.**

_H e l l _

_W a s_

_H e r_

_A n g e l _

The cold air wrapped around her small, frail body that seemed so underweight; bones protruding through the fabrics of her simple white dress that fell just to her knees. Despite the cold of the night, she wore nothing more and even the sleeves just went past her defined shoulders. The shade of her skin was paler then the dress that she wore, making her look almost like a moving skeleton. Her face of small childish features was dark; black rings lying underneath her grey coloured eyes that were slightly smudged around the sides from eyeliner and mascara. Her hair was tied back; the shade a deep chocolate that reflected the moons rays. Her bare feet dug up the sand she walked across slowly, her small body taking its time to walk along the shore of the ocean; her eyes seeming to be at peace. With how perfect, how fluidly she walked it was almost like she was a ghost gliding across the shore without a care in the world. The fast movement of the Kukai Foundation; the technology, the people and all the noise had long drifted from her ears. The people had fallen asleep, and she had walked so far along the beach anyway that the noises of anyone awake would be too distant for her to notice. This was what she did every night – the floating skeleton. She would walk to the beach and walk for hours and hours, trying to avoid her nightmare of sleep as much as possible. That and another part of her relished walking – the ability to burn off something she despised, something she hardly carried. Fat. Not like that was her biggest concern at that moment in time anyway. Finally, after some time she dropped herself down onto the sand and sat, close enough to the sea that every time the ocean drew in it would lick the ends of her toes peacefully. Smiling gently, she pulled her knees to her chest, wrapped her bony arms around her legs and rested her chin on her arms – watching the ocean dancing in the night.

Once her eyes were half shut, she found them opening wide again as a warm flash of adrenalin ran through her body. The peace was quickly ripped away from her as a hand touched her shoulder – the fear so sharp for a moment she thought the worse had happened; that she had fallen asleep. But as her fear filled, fatigued eyes moved up to see whatever had touched her, she realised how she was still awake in the normal world – the normal Foundation. She even knew the man gazing down at her with gentle emerald eyes. Not knew as in they had met before, but who didn't know the face of Gaignun Kukai? The leader of the Foundation that they were upon. He was different to how she expected; his face bright, smiling with a gentle pair of lips. She had expected some man with a cranky look about him; that would be irritated with anyone and everyone all because of the work they had to endure. But from the expression he gave her he seemed like a peaceful kind man; or that could have been the effect of the beach and the darkness of the night. It was strange, to have her thick blanket of solitude pierced but not in a harsh way. It was almost as if he wormed himself into her world of darkness; of plain and simplicity as he sat down on the sand alongside her; wearing his formal attire. His black jacket that was just like the sky and his black trousers. As he had sat down beside her the hand travelled down her arm before resting on his own knee; the touch so foreign to her it caused her to shiver. The gentle noise of the ocean almost begged for her attention again; it had the attention of the man who was looking out towards it, but the girl had her colourless gems looking at Gaignun Kukai rather then the sea. She felt no tension coming from the man and in a positive way it was good there was someone there. To keep her from sleeping. And he had such a peaceful aura about him it was quite pleasant. Allowing her slow moving, grey eyes, to travel from him, they landed finally to the sea, watching the faint reflections of the moon upon it shake. She felt locked; locked in a beautiful box with herself and this stranger, away and safe from the nightmare of her dreams.

Just as she lifted her hand, an angelic voice rung through her ears. The voice was softer then silk and he seemed to respect her isolation by speaking so quietly. "It's a beautiful night," he commented; trying obviously to make small talk. She just curled some lose hair behind her ear, gazing into the ocean but in the corner of the Chairman's eyes, he could see her lip pull inwards for a small second. He took this as his cue to continue speaking; his voice just as gentle as before. "Aren't you cold?" she could sense the worry in his voice but she just stared foreword; not even being able to move her head. It was as if she were caught in a web; unable to speak or to move. As she allowed herself to be woven into the web she found herself blanking out from the world again, forgetting about Gaignun Kukai sat beside her in the sand. She felt her mind relaxing into a state of nothingness until she was pulled from it again, yet not as harshly as she was when Gaignun had placed a hand upon her shoulder.

This time she was gently pulled from the emptiness of her mind through a soft action of his. She could feel a heat encircling her back and arms, before she lifted her head; almost panicked for a split second. Her eyes darted from left to right as he wrapped his own jacket around her body, protecting her from the cold. She didn't care much for the cold; it never affected her. Even in the warmth of summer she walked around wearing turtle neck jumpers and gloves all the time. But as he laid the soft silk against her small body she gave a slight shiver before smiling gently; her grey eyes looking over at his face. She noted the shape of his jaw line; the perfect way his bone had formed, and the brightest of his emerald eyes was unbelievable. His brows were quite strange in shape, but arched finely; their colour identical to his raven locks. His features were so defined, so beautiful she imagined she looked like a rat compared to him. She could even see through his white silk shirt his muscles; his flat yet toned shape of a body. Her legs were fat, at least to her eyes; a pair of pieces of fat sticking out from an overlarge stomach that looked as if she were pregnant. She hated her pointed nose, which she believed to be a witches one and her face was always rounded no matter how much weight she lost. But she was skinny; her skin wrapped around her bones and only bones and her face was round, yet her cheekbones were defined; something she couldn't see. She thought she had the weirdest eyes yet they were large and even though they were colourless grey they were beautiful. Still, in embarrassment from being so close to a handsome creature she hunched her shoulders; the shoulder pads of his blazer moving to cover the majority of her face. The skeleton parted its thin lips and as if Gaignun could tell it were a struggle for her to speak before he even tried, he spoke over her.

"You're welcome," he said, smiling gently again with his eyes sparkling. She closed her lips once more before smiling gently; feeling her fatigue drift away as she became slightly more energised by the stranger. With concerned eyes, he tilted his head slightly. "Shouldn't you be at home? It's not safe to be out at night."

She paused, turning her head back to the ocean as she let the air escape through her nose. Perhaps he was right, but with a man like him around there was nothing to be frightened of. Besides; safety on the Kukai Foundation was great due to the way the man beside her ran it. There was hardly anything criminal and murders were rare; extremely rare. But then of course, they didn't account for the strange incidents that happened but they never mattered. Unless something had an answer it would never matter. As she became encircled in her mind again, Gaignun just lowered his eyes to her legs for a few moments before looking back out to the sea wondering what was going through her mind. He wasn't going to lie to himself, nor would he lie to her. He knew this woman; this twenty-one year old girl ever so well. He possibly knew her better then any other person in the galaxy and he had only given a few sentences and she had given none. It had been a year ago when he first saw her; she was a lot healthier then with darker skin and thicker, brighter hair. She was slim, yes, but not as skinny as she was then. She smiled and she sung at a bar. That was when he had first seen her; Rubedo forcing him to go along because of her voice that he 'just had to hear live'. So he went, to hear the person on the stage that did indeed have a spectacular voice. But she only sung rarely; mostly playing the guitar so his visits became less and less and time went by. He learned of her name, which became useful a few months ago when he spotted her by the shore of his private beach. She obviously didn't know of how it belonged to him, even know she probably had no idea and he wasn't in any rush to tell her. Curious, he ran up information of her; learning how there were no records of her parents, no records of a previous job or anything. The only tab they had on her was the house she paid for a few years ago and her electricity bills. She hadn't even had a phone bill; a loner. A pure loner and it almost saddened him, especially as he could see her health degrading as time went by. But there was something about the stranger that drew him closer. Perhaps it was the fact she was often in his nightmares, perhaps not but that was nothing to dwell on anyway. He couldn't even remember those dreams or nightmares well.

"I'm safer when I cannot sleep," she finally whispered; her lips so dry she couldn't talk louder then the sound of a pin drop. He snapped his head immediately to her; straining his ears just to hear her sentence but he did hear it. She looked at him through the corner of her eye; some of her chocolate strands escaping from the ribbon at the back of her head. "May I ask … Why you are here during the night?" finally, her hands escaped slowly from the shield of his blazer. He watched as the two pale hands came out from the darkness; almost looking like a wing of a bird with no feathers, skin or flesh; just their bones stretching out momentarily. They curled around the soft silk of the blazer and pulled them closer to her body before creeping back under the black material. He wondered whether those hands had ever been seen by anyone else's eyes but his own. Once she had finished with her movement, he answered slowly.

"I've seen you here a few times," he said as kind as he could as to not frighten the poor girl. He could understand how he came off quite strange; he even freaked himself out too with the fascination of this girl. Or was it pity? Perhaps. He just didn't wish for her to be alone anymore. "I thought it would be nice to talk to you."

"Talk?" she questioned, tilting her head to the side as she gazed at him; her grey eyes holding some emotion in them although he couldn't quite pick up on it. "I have never talked before. Not more then a few sentences at least. I sing for singing does not make things worse," he had to admit that her voice when she spoke was just as beautiful as the one she used to sing. To his shock, she stood up, almost stumbling to her feet again but her gaze never left his eyes. The emotion drifted into one of sorrow as she slipped his blaze from her shoulders; the only bit of warmth she had gained in her life was slipped away. He could see her collarbones; her arms as thin as needles and as she turned away from him he could see her back bones protruding like angels wings. Pain rumbled his heart for her. "I am a curse, Master Gaignun and I am afraid I should not waste your time anymore then I have done. Leave before I trap you in a nightmare," she turned her face towards him; her eyes firm as she looked him up and down. "Unless I have already."

Once she took a step foreword, he wasted no time to stand to his feet; not allowing her to go anywhere. Grains of sand slipped off his trousers and hands from the force of gravity that allowed them to return to their resting place. "Elizabeth," he held his breathe and she did too; concentrating on the flow of the waves for a moment. In and out; in and out; a thing controlled by the moon embedded deep in the blanket of the night sky. Something that controlled so much in the world yet hardly anyone knew about it. For a moment she imagined herself to be the moon; just there to move the ocean of beauty, rather then the nightmares she was forced to move.

"_One more soul to the call, for all in silence, comes two more souls to the call in all, for time three more time; they bond unknowing that four more souls won't be all,_" she sung; her voice so silent, so quiet he struggled to hear it over the waves but the lyrics she used sent shivers to fly down his spine; his mind wishing he hadn't heard them. She turned her head to him, looking over her white shoulder as her eyes slowly made their way into his. She was much smaller then he was but at that moment in time he felt like a child; this woman having a new aura he didn't know about. Something so eerie, so utterly creepy and the fact that she looked so frail, thin and pale didn't help either. "I know why you came here, Gaignun. You spotted me in a dream… a nightmare…something so faint you can hardly remember it now…" her voice began to drift as her sentence carried on, so he took a step closer to be able to hear her yet as he did her eyes drifted from his and back to the ocean. "…Now you're curious of me…for every time you dream I am there… If you continue this curiosity … these dreams will become reality and soon you will be running from sleep just as I am."

Speechless, he could only stare at her; his emerald eyes firm as they did. His brows were pushed down slightly as he tried to think what in the world she was talking about. It was such a curious thing indeed for he had dreamt of her and as he stared at her he could remember some of the dreams. Where there were strange, inhuman sounds emitting from the streets of the Kukai Foundation; darkness all around him and a smell he didn't quite recognise. It reminded him of the times when he was a child, training as a U.R.T.V but he refused to think of such matters. He could remember seeing her in his dreams, perhaps simply walking by or through a window of a broken down building. That was another strange thing; all the buildings were old and breaking, like his Foundation hadn't been tended to in years. But even though these were just dreams how did she know that he dreamt of her? He found himself asking the most peculiar of questions like were they really dreams? But that was silly. Completely and utterly silly.

"The fact that you are stood here shows that it may be too late…" she whispered, lowering her head and allowing strands of chocolate hair to cover the sides of her face. "I know…you may believe me to be crazy…but heed my words Gaignun and face these nightmares…"

Slowly, Elizabeth lifted her right hand from her side, spreading her fingers from the pale palm Gaignun was able to see. In the darkness of the night, he could see something printed upon her hand that almost completely and utterly terrified him. It was just a simple print; something that would never leave her skin but what it meant was unbelievable. It was just… he was staring he knew he was and the urge to snatch her hand was running through his veins but he couldn't – he couldn't surprise the fragile woman or be rude in such a way. But the numbers were as clear as day: 000. Nought, nought, nought in pure red dye that was almost like blood; just like the number on his own palm. Confusion welled so hard in his soul that his heart began to twist in slight pain as he worked his brain, wondering how and who she could be.

From staring so curiously at her hand, he hadn't noticed how her eyes had widened or that the scent of fresh salt water escaped his nostrils. He didn't even notice the fierce trembling of her hand that had frozen whilst going to push more hair behind her ear. He could feel the slight change in atmosphere as he stood there but nothing grabbed his attention as he scrambled around his brain for what the number could mean. A model? Or a fake? But finally, his attention was grabbed when he heard the slight uttering of his name through her pale, trembling lips. Lifting his eyes, he could see her trembling grey ones set on the ocean to the side of him; her lips parted. In his nose he could smell blood and as he slowly turned his head to the left, to see the ocean what he saw caused him to take a step back as if the sight had been so strong it pushed him. The usual blood tinge to the ocean had transformed to a bloody, thick red that seemed almost impossible. The waves brushed in and out, licking at Elizabeth's feet still as she stood there; horrified. A shiver ran throughout his body as he shut his eyes momentarily, wanting to open them and be back on the normal beach with her yet nothing changed in his sights and he knew she could see exactly what he did. His gaze turned to her as her arms came around her chest. Her face looked brighter as if she had been sleeping; the paleness still there but not as bad and the bags underneath her eyes were slowly fading but she shook her head in denial.

"We fell asleep…" she whispered, shaking her head again; feeling her neck becoming sore. Something howled from far behind them, coming from the residential area and she hunched her shoulders slightly, holding her breath as she remaindered herself it was not the time to play wimp. When the howl came he snapped his head to the town for a moment before checking her expression; her grey eyes showing horror. Could it even be called a dream? He was so awake, so in tune with the world and he could feel the cold on his skin; feel the slight strain of his lungs if he held his breathe for slightly too long. "I don't remember falling asleep…W-when did this happen?" her voice seemed a little louder then it was before; her breathing better as well from what he could tell.

"Its okay, Elizabeth, it's just a dream," he told her gently, reaching foreword to touch her arm with his right hand but as she did she too noticed what was on his palm. Those numbers. She swatted it away before taking a firm step back; her brows furrowed.

"Don't touch me," she growled. Unlike him, she had no idea what those numbers meant but whatever it was she didn't like it. Other's that had passed in her nightmares carried numbers; tons of them, all printed on her hand like hers. Were these the numbers of the cursed? The ones that were forced to endure hell and finally die in it? Yes, of course they were and this number was next, which almost saddened her yet she had no control over the matter. She had tried to be quiet; she had no friends, no life and nothing apart from the numbers. She tried to be under the radar yet he found her out for no real given reason. His curiosity was his downfall. "Your fears are going to alter in this nightmare. They will become real; they will become what you never wanted them to be – reality. I warn you though me and you are connected. When I fall asleep, you shall too. If you fall asleep I will. Likewise if I awake, you awake and if you awake then I follow."

He just stared bewildered. This could not have been true; this had to have been something his mind was creating – a trick even. He couldn't remember falling asleep, but maybe if what she was saying to be true then she might have and he followed her but because they came to a nightmarish version of their world that it wasn't obvious. Before he had a chance to figure things out within his mind, she had already begun to walk away from him – heading towards the town where the howl had come from. He could sense the fear drenched in her veins yet she continued to walk. Putting a hand foreword, he called her name gently; hearing another howl not too far away that caused him to wince slightly.

"Where are you going?" he questioned; honestly not wishing to be left alone in such a world nor wanting her to be alone. He took a small step foreword, his legs feeling heavy under his weight. The ends of her dress gently flew around her legs and he noticed how her bare feet had become bloody from the oceans waves. Without turning around, she spoke; her voice still quiet yet just about audible.

"I'm going home," was her quick, simple reply. He watched as she brought something out from a pocket in her dress; a silver hand gun. The bones of her hands curled around the weapon as it reflected the rays of the moon. He paid no attention to the weapon but was confused as to the fact she was leaving them to split up in the nightmare. Wouldn't such a thing be unwise? Of course he wasn't scared – there was probably nothing to be frightened of for all he could remember from his other nightmares were the strange noises from creatures. Quickly, he forced his mind to work as he took some fast steps foreword; wishing to catch up with her. When he was finally at her side he didn't try to touch her again after what she had said. He hadn't meant any harm; of course, he just wished to comfort her which hadn't gone to plan. Letting his eyes drift to her face, she seemed to ignore his presence yet he could tell she wasn't being rude. From the emotions seeping from her skin he knew she was frightened; or terrified if that were the better word. Completely and utterly terrified and the feeling she felt nerved him slightly.

"Is it safe for you to be alone?" he asked her gently, his eyes never leaving her face as he kept up with her slow pace; the pair of them turning from the beach and towards the town. In the corner of his eye he could see the sand beginning to face and turn into the pathway; which district they were in he didn't know. He didn't really care. He just cared for her safety; mentally and physically. Even though physically at that moment in time she was the only one that possessed a weapon. As they stepped onto the pavement he saw her feet stop momentarily as the cold shot up through her bones. The second she shivered he wasted no time to strip his jacket from his body. She had stopped in curiosity, wondering what in the world he was doing but before she could protest about the jacket it was already firmly wrapped around her and she could do nothing but politely put her arms through the sleeves and thank him gratefully; nodding her head as she did so. More strands of her chocolate hair fell from her ribbon but this time she ignored them; allowing the slight curls to brush against her pale cheeks. Allowing his eyes to travel around their location, Gaignun could recognise it slightly. Not from reality but from his own nightmares. The broken windows of the buildings; the empty streets and homes and the eerie white fog that hovered about; preventing his eyes from travelling too far. Shadows in the distance moved quickly; a scampering of claws not to far away caused his heart to beat funny. Things were hidden in the alleys, hiding in the fog and in the building. Things that weren't human in any way shape or form. And he was dreading seeing one with his emerald gems.

"I am sorry…" she whispered, lowering her chocolate covered eyes as she took a few more steps foreword; ignoring the stinging pain of the pavement's cold. Honestly, she had no idea where the pair of them was walking to and she almost felt like she was walking the man to his death but this was a world she could not control. If it wanted the man within it then she couldn't stop it. She was like the gatekeeper and that was all. "For having this happen to you…"

He looked at her, unsure of what to say or what to do. As she breathed she could smell the sweetness of his cologne from the jacket and a slight scent of rose from the liquid used to wash it. So peaceful, just so peaceful in the nightmare. But the peace was broken once he spoke again. "I need to know what's going on. So far all I know is that I'm stuck in your nightmare."

"I don't know," she hissed finally, glaring up at him. "I don't know what this place is, what it does but its damn evil. I don't pick who comes and who goes; you entwined yourself with this world by taking an interest in me. I told you that I am a curse and you're facing it. Now all you do is survive and to do that you face your fears. I don't know anymore then you do."

Slowly, Elizabeth shut her eyes, feeling a weight drift from her body. Her heart thudded quickly as she prayed she was waking up; a feeling of peace washed over her as she did as such. The feelings of warmth came about her and the cold of her feet had drifted away in an instant but when she returned to part her bruised eyelids her brows widened and her heart skipped a beat. She had not returned to the beach where she hoped she had done; instead she stood in an office building. The walls were stained in a mixture of dried blood and rust; the wallpaper that had transformed to a mouldy orange-yellow shade with a hint of brown, was curling and torn in places. The floorboards were old, creaking under her weight loudly as if she weighed a ton. A few stains of blood were on the floor. A dirty chair was toppled over at the desk, which was too covered in possibly gooey blood and rust; papers upon it ripped and torn yet still readable. Some books like as if they had been burnt with fire, and the large glass window that once shone out to the beauty of the Kukai Foundation was covered in so much black dirt and moss it was impossible to see through it. The sour scent of metal and blood ran into her lungs, slowing her breathing down more as she wished not to inhale the stench. Her shaking hand still clutched the weapon; her fingers gently against the trigger. On the other side of the wall she could hear noises; moans and scratches as if something were to get in. She prayed, oh she prayed hard that she would awake soon or Gaignun would.

Just as she thought of him she looked around the room once more; the man no where in sight. Widening her eyes she headed for the door, about to wrap her fingers around the knob when something banged on it from the other side so hard she almost fell back to the floor as panic overwhelmed her. Putting her left hand on her heart, she quickly pushed her back against the wall; away from the crack underneath the door that could show the slightest hints of her shadow moving across it. Through the wall she could hear another hiss and her hand scrambled up her neck, grabbing the cross dangling from her silver necklace. She wanted the creature to leave; to find something else to do rather then frighten her. As the noises dyed down she pushed her back from against the wall, knowing she would have to be quiet. It had not left but it was slowly stopping paying her any attention. Gulping, she scanned the room that was light only slightly from the light seeping through the crack under the door. Moving to the desk she scanned the papers quietly, noting the name "Gaignun Kukai" upon them; private matters that belonged to him. Assuming she was in his office, she opened the drawers of his desk, searching through them just to find a torch of some sort. Her hands moved over blankets of dust, papers and pens and all sorts of useless things. The tips of her fingers came across something cold, but familiar and as she pulled a metallic hoop from the draws she heard the chattering of keys knocking each other. Smiling slightly to herself she attached the hoop, the keychain, to the thin strap of her white dress. Returning her hand to the other draw, she finally felt the cone shape of a torch at her fingers. Smiling, she pulled the torch from the draw and switched the button on. The second she did a large metallic bang echoed through the building and the light that had come from underneath the door dyed out in an instant. Wincing, she did her best to ignore the fear running through her veins and looked down at the sheets upon the desk. Just as she was curiously beginning to read over them, a ringing filled the room causing her to physically jump; her body trembling hard as she turned to the right, spotting an old fashioned black phone sitting on his desk – the only clean item in the room. Lowering the gun slowly into the desk, she pointed her torch to the wall as she wrapped her bony fingers around the phone. As she pulled it from its resting place the ringing stopped and eventually she had brought the piece to her ear.

"Elizabeth?" it took her a moment to register the voice she had heard; her mind so full of fear she didn't even understand the word for a few seconds. The voice was male, and then she realised who it was the second her name was repeated again; Gaignun. A rather panicked Gaignun. "Where are you?"

For a moment she stared at the desk, taking in all the cracks and stains of blood. How did she know this man on the phone was Gaignun? Anything could be playing tricks on her. She couldn't tell him where she was; how did he manage to get a phone? This couldn't have been him…He wouldn't have known where to call. But if this illusion knew which phone to call would it even matter if she told him? For picking up the phone had just given away her location… Widening her eyes, her trembling hand pulled the phone away from her head as if it were a monster and slammed it back into its cradle, staring at it for long moments. Before she moved, she tightened the oversized blazer that belonged to Gaignun around her shoulders again; hoping it wouldn't try to slip off her small body. As she reached out for her gun there was a tapping at the door, which she knew came from a human knuckle. Snapping her head to the door, she heard the knocking again.

"_Elizabeth, can I come in please?"_ the voice one she recognised: her father. Taking a step back, she quickly took the gun; holding her breath in her lungs firmly as if doing such a thing would make him disapear. "_I doubt Master Gaignun would like you looking around his things..."_

_Damage done to the flesh, what they said in the name of love _  
_Damage done to the heart, is the start of the end _  
_Damage done to my soul, I know it goes with_  
_Damage done to my life, pressing out at a chaos _

_One more soul to the call, for all in silence_  
_Two more souls to the call, for all and in time ... _  
_Three more souls to the call, they fought a lonley night _  
_Four more souls to the call, won't be all and you know it_


End file.
